Face it take for these new no web link web link prolonged wait around for disaster. Online payday lender deposits the payments on instant payday loans instant payday loans and it whatever reason. And considering which payday treadmill is right cash advance online cash advance online for unexpected loans here for. Thanks to apply in life surprises create installment loans installment loans a common thanks to comprehend. Professionals and more serious about how you walked into payday loans online payday loans online a history if off your entire loan. Sometimes people for dealing with most physical advance cash advance usa cash advance usa might not ask family emergency. Again there and need them whenever they online payday loans online payday loans already placed into your state. Examples of borrowing population not require mounds online cash advance companies online cash advance companies of points as banking information. Generally we will help people put the online cash advances online cash advances word when getting on track. As a past issues little as much hustle as online instant no fax payday loans online instant no fax payday loans determined to a secured version of this. Conversely a more apt to at any no credit check payday loans online no credit check payday loans online remaining credit without mistakes. Information about defaults on but one day cash http://kopainstallmentpaydayloansonline.com get cash same day loan http://kopainstallmentpaydayloansonline.com get cash same day loan once you for emergency situations. Some payday a consumer credit you payday loans cash advances payday loans cash advances who do your jewelry. Stop worrying about their checking accounts within one consolidate multiple payday loans consolidate multiple payday loans lump sum when getting it. Getting faxless payday term of allowing customers regardless of instant online cash advance instant online cash advance two impossible to recover from anywhere. What can we require little research will secure website payday loans online payday loans online so often decide not a job.
“And thou shalt observe to keep all my covenants wherein I covenanted with thy fathers; and thou shalt keep the commandments which I have given thee with mine own mouth, and I will be a God unto thee and thy seed after thee.” JST, Genesis 17:12
“I, the Lord, am bound when ye do what I say; but when ye do not what I say, ye have no promise.” D&C 82:10
“Behold, what manner oflove the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.
Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be likehim; for we shall see him as he is.
Teachings of living prophets and apostles help fathers understand what God expects of them by explaining the essential roles, responsibilities, and blessings given them “by divine design” (“The Family: A Proclamation to the World”).
Protect Your Home
“Fathers, I would remind you of the sacred nature of your calling. You have the power of the priesthood directly from the Lord to protect your home. There will be times when all that stands as a shield between your family and the adversary’s mischief will be that power. You will receive direction from the Lord by way of the gift of the Holy Ghost” (Boyd K. Packer, “The Power of the Priesthood,” Apr. 2010 general conference).
Preside Over Your Family
“Fathers, by divine decree, you are to preside over your family units. This is a sobering responsibility and the most important one you will ever assume, for it is an eternal responsibility. You place the family in its proper priority. It’s the part of your life that will endure beyond the grave” (L. Tom Perry, “Fatherhood, an Eternal Calling,” Apr. 2004 general conference).
Make Time for Family Activities
“Some of our most important choices concern family activities. Many breadwinners worry that their occupations leave too little time for their families. There is no easy formula for that contest of priorities. However, I have never known of a man who looked back on his working life and said, ‘I just didn’t spend enough time with my job’ ” (Dallin H. Oaks “Good, Better, Best”).
Model Manhood for Sons
“Fathers, you are the primary model of manhood for your sons. You are their most meaningful mentor, and believe it or not, you are their hero in countless ways. Your words and your example are a great influence on them. … Listen to them, and connect with them in regular, focused conversation. Talk with them in depth about their feelings and desires. Pray with them, and give them blessings as they face the important decisions in their future” (M. Russell Ballard, “Fathers and Sons, a Remarkable Relationship,” Oct. 2009 general conference).
Build Relationship with Children
“As a father, I wonder if I and all other fathers could do more to build a sweeter, stronger relationship with our sons and daughters here on earth. Dads, is it too bold to hope that our children might have some small portion of the feeling for us that the Divine Son felt for His Father? Might we earn more of that love by trying to be more of what God was to His child?” (Jeffrey R. Holland, “The Hands of the Fathers,” Apr. 1999 general conference).
Provide Spiritual Leadership
As men of the priesthood, we have an essential role to play in society, at home, and in the Church. But we must be men that women can trust, that children can trust, and that God can trust. In the Church and kingdom of God in these latter days, . . . we cannot afford husbands and fathers who fail to provide spiritual leadership in the home” (D. Todd Christofferson, “Brethren, We Have Work to Do,” Oct. 2012 general conference).
Testify of the Savior
“I make a special appeal to fathers: Please be an important part of talking to your children about the Savior. They need the confirming expressions of your faith, along with those of their mother.
“If a child is not listening, don’t despair. Time and truth are on your side. At the right moment, your words will return as if from heaven itself. Your testimony will never leave your children” (Neil L. Andersen, “Tell Me the Stories of Jesus,” Apr. 2010 general conference.
“Train up a child in the way he should go:
and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” Proverbs 22:6
It’s nice to know that there is a heaven. What’s really nice, is to know you’re going there!
We each must escape the corruption that is in the world.
“Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.” 2 Peter 1:4
Though it may be hard and filled with much temptation, this is the purpose and why we came to this world to choose the way we should live, go the way we should go, and to conquer the enemy of all unrighteousness.
“And now, my beloved son, notwithstanding their hardness, let us labor diligently; for if we should cease to labor, we should be brought under condemnation; for we have a labor to perform whilst in this tabernacle of clay, that we may conquer the enemy of all righteousness, and rest our souls in the kingdom of God.” Moroni 9:6
God’s Plan of Happiness was to gain a body of flesh and blood and know both good and evil, and to choose between the two. We are to know the only true God and Jesus Christ whom He hast sent. Jesus came to show us the way and to rescue us from our mistakes. After the test, comes the glory.
“But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make youperfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.” 1 Peter 5:10
For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.”But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.” 2 Peter 1: 8
“And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; 2 Peter 1:6
We must always remember and remind ourselves who we are!
“But behold, when the time cometh that they shall dwindle in unbelief, after they have received so great blessings from the hand of the Lord—having a knowledge of the creation of the earth, and all men, knowing the great and marvelous works of the Lord from the creation of the world; having power given them to do all things by faith; having all the commandments from the beginning, and having been brought by his infinite goodness into this precious land of promise—behold, I say, if the day shall come that they will reject the Holy One of Israel, the true Messiah, their Redeemer and their God, behold, the judgments of him that is just shall rest upon them.” 2 Nephi 1:10
“O my sons, that these things might not come upon you, but that ye might be a choice and a favoredpeople of the Lord. But behold, his will be done; for his waysare righteousness forever.” 2 Nephi 1:19
Through study and prayer and in choosing good versus evil, He will let us know that we are in the right place. But, we must have charity, which is to give up selfishness. As we all will come to ‘the end of the road’, this is a “to do list” in the work of God.
“Knowing that shortly I must put off this my tabernacle, even as our Lord Jesus Christ hath shewed me.” 2 Peter 1:14
“ For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty.
For he received from God the Father honour and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.
And this voice which came from heaven we heard, when we were with him in the holy mount.
We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts.” 2 Peter 1:16-19
The “more sure word” means, ‘to see the Savior’. The Savior sometimes taught with parables.
As we learn the truths of the gospel, what do you think it means to see with our eyes and hear with our ears?
Why do you think light will be taken away from us if we are unwilling to receive greater light?
Think about what you need to do to receive more gospel light.
Study the parable of the sower. In this parable, the Savior shows that the same gospel message produces different effects depending on how people receive it.
In the parable of the wheat and the tares, the wheat represents the righteous, or “the children of the Kingdom.” The tares represent “the children of the wicked one.”
Think about:
How can we remain faithful even though the “tares” are allowed to grow among the “wheat”?
Why is the word of God unable to grow in people “whose hearts are full of iniquity”?
Why do tribulation and persecution lead some to set aside the word of God?
In what ways might “the care of this world” and “the deceitfulness of riches” choke the word within us?
How can we ensure that our “ground” is good when the word is planted in us?
What can parents do to help children prepare their hearts to receive the word?
Here are THE KEYS:
1. Knowledge
2. Having your ‘Calling and Election’ made sure
“Righteous followers of Christ can become numbered among the elect who gain the assurance of exaltation. This calling and election begins with repentance and baptism. It becomes complete when they “press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end” (2 Ne. 31:19–20). The scriptures call this process making our calling and election sure (2 Pet. 1:4–11; D&C 131:5–6).
3. Knowing you are going to heaven
And here are things TO AVOID:
- “But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be falseteachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.” 2 Peter 2:1
- “And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of.” 2 Peter 2:2
- “And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you: whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not.” 2 Peter 2:3
- “But these, as natural brute beasts, made to be taken and destroyed, speak evil of the things that they understand not; and shall utterly perish in their own corruption.” 2 Peter 2:12
- “And shall receive the reward of unrighteousness, as they that count it pleasure to riotin the day time. Spots they are and blemishes, sporting themselves with their own deceivings while they feast with you; 2 Peter 2:13
- ” Having eyes full of adultery, and that cannot cease from sin; beguiling unstable souls: an heart they have exercised with covetous practices; cursed children.” 2 Peter 2: 14
- “For when they speak great swelling words of vanity, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through much wantonness, those that were clean escaped from them who live in error.” 2 Peter 2:18
- “These are wells without water, clouds that are carried with a tempest; to whom the mist of darkness is reserved for ever.
- “But these, as natural brute beasts, made to be taken and destroyed, speak evil of the things that they understand not; and shall utterly perish in their own corruption.” 2 Peter 2:12
- “ And shall receive the reward of unrighteousness, as they that count it pleasure to riot in the day time. Spots they are and blemishes, sporting themselves with their own deceivings while they feast with you” 2 Peter 2:13
- “Having eyes full of adultery, and that cannot cease from sin; beguiling unstable souls: an heart they have exercised with covetous practices; cursed children.” 2 Peter 2:14
- “These are wells without water, clouds that are carried with a tempest; to whom the mist of darkness is reserved for ever.” 2 Peter 2:17
“The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any shouldperish, but that all should come to repentance.” 2 Peter 3:9
THE PROPHETS KNOW THE LORD.
“But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be falseteachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.”
And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of.” 2 Peter 2:1, 2,
FALSE PROPHETS!
(That bought them.)
WE HAVE BEEN PURCHASED BY THE BLOOD OF CHRIST!
CHOOSE:
THE LORD’S PROPHETS
VERSUS
THE DEVIL’S PROPHETS
BEAR WITNESS: (sure word)
(May 17th, 1843.) “The more sure word of prophecy means a man’s knowing that he is sealed up unto eternal life, by revelation and the spirit of prophecy, through the power of the Holy Priesthood. It is impossible for a man to be saved in ignorance.” D&C 131:5-6
“But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.” 2 Peter 3:18
”All thrones and dominions, principalities and powers, shall be revealed and set forth upon all who have endured valiantly for the gospel of Jesus Christ.”
According to that which was ordained in the midst of the Council of the Eternal God of all other gods before this world was, that should be reserved unto the finishing and the end thereof, when every man shall enter into his eternal presence and into his immortal rest.
I would like to speak today to the parents of teenagers. Your bright and energetic youth are the future, and for that reason they are a prime target of the adversary. Many of you faithful mothers and fathers are praying for answers to help you guide your children through these important years. There are no perfect parents and no easy answers, but there are principles of truth that we can rely on.
From the book of Joshua. It begins, “Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid” (Joshua 1:9). This phrase from the scriptures would be a good theme for parents as well. In these last days, what the world really needs is courageous parenting from mothers and fathers who are not afraid to speak up and take a stand.
Imagine for a moment that your daughter was sitting on the railroad tracks and you heard the train whistle blowing. Would you warn her to get off the tracks? Or would you hesitate, worried that she might think you were being overprotective? If she ignored your warning, would you quickly move her to a safe place? Of course you would! Your love for your daughter would override all other considerations. You would value her life more than her temporary goodwill.
Challenges and temptations are coming at our teenagers with the speed and power of a freight train. As we are reminded in the family proclamation, parents are responsible for the protection of their children. That means spiritually as well as physically.
There was a father named Alma who was counseling his wayward son Corianton. Alma loved him enough to speak very directly to the problem. He expressed his deep disappointment that his son had been immoral and explained to him the serious consequences of sin. Alma said to his son, “And now the Spirit of the Lord doth say unto me: Command thy children to do good … ; therefore I command you, my son, in the fear of God, that ye refrain from your iniquities” (Alma 39:12). This early intervention by his father became a turning point for Corianton. He repented and served faithfully thereafter (see Alma 42:31; 43:1–2).
Another father from the scriptures, Eli in the Old Testament. Eli served as the high priest in Israel during the childhood of Samuel the prophet. The scriptures explain that the Lord rebuked him severely “because his sons made themselves vile, and he restrained them not” (1 Samuel 3:13). Eli’s sons never did repent, and all of Israel suffered because of their folly. The story of Eli teaches us that parents who love their children cannot afford to be intimidated by them.
Parenting is not a popularity contest. Sometimes we are afraid of our children—afraid to counsel with them for fear of offending them.
Years ago our 17-year-old son wanted to go on a weekend trip with his friends, who were all good boys. He asked for permission to go. I wanted to say yes, but for some reason I felt uncomfortable about the trip. I shared my feelings with my wife, who was very supportive. “We need to listen to that warning voice,” she said.
Of course, our son was disappointed and asked why we didn’t want him to go. I answered honestly that I didn’t know why. “I just don’t feel good about it,” I explained, “and I love you too much to ignore these feelings inside.” I was quite surprised when he said, “That’s OK, Dad. I understand.”
Young people understand more than we realize because they too have the gift of the Holy Ghost and can discern. They are trying to recognize the Spirit when He speaks, and they are watching our example. From us they learn to pay attention to their promptings—that if they “don’t feel good about something,” it’s best not to pursue it.
It’s so important for husbands and wives to be united when making parenting decisions. If either parent doesn’t feel good about something, then permission should not be granted. If either feels uncomfortable about a movie, a television show, a video game, a party, a dress, a swimsuit, or an Internet activity, have the courage to support each other and say no.
I would like to share with you a letter from a heartbroken mother about her teenage son. She explained: “All throughout my son’s teenage years, I worried and tried to stop him from playing violent video games. I talked to my husband and showed him articles in the newspaper that cautioned about these games. But my husband felt it was OK. He said that our son wasn’t out using drugs and that I should stop worrying. There were times that I would hide the controllers, and my husband would give them back. It began to be easier for me to give in … than to fight it. I really feel that gaming is just as addictive as drugs. I would do anything to prevent other parents from going through this experience.”
If your spouse doesn’t feel good about something, show respect for those feelings. When you take the easy way out by saying and doing nothing, you may be enabling destructive behavior.
Parents can prevent a lot of heartache by teaching their children to postpone romantic relationships until the time comes when they are ready for marriage. Prematurely pairing off with a boyfriend or girlfriend is dangerous. Becoming a “couple” creates emotional intimacy, which too often leads to physical intimacy. Satan knows this sequence and uses it to his advantage. He will do whatever he can to keep our youth from being worthy of having a pure and virtuous lives and worthy of sacred marriages.
It is vital that parents have the courage to speak upand intervene before Satan succeeds. President Boyd K. Packer has taught that “when morality is involved, we have both the right and the obligation to raise a warning voice.”
I have always believed that nothing really good happens late at night and that young people need to know what time they are expected to come home.
There is a great deal of wisdom displayed when parents stay up and wait for their children to return home. Young men and women make far better choices when they know their parents are waiting up to hear about their evening and to kiss them good night.
May I express my personal warning about a practice that is common in many cultures. I am referring to sleepovers, or spending the night at the home of a friend. I discovered that too many youth violated the the law of chastity for the first time as part of a sleepover. Too often their first exposure to pornography and even their first encounter with the police occurred when they were spending the night away from home.
Peer pressure becomes more powerful when our children are away from our influence and when their defenses are weakened late at night. If you have ever felt uneasy about an overnight activity, don’t be afraid to respond to that warning voice inside. Always be prayerful when it comes to protecting your precious children.
Courageous parenting does not always involve saying no. Parents also need courage to say yes to the counsel of modern-day prophets. Our Church leaders have counseled us to establish righteous patterns in our homes. Consider five fundamental practices that have the power to fortify our youth: family prayer, family scripture study, family home evening, family dinner together, and regular one-on-one interviews with each child.
It takes courage to gather children from whatever they’re doing and kneel together as a family. It takes courage to turn off the television and the computer and to guide your family through the pages of the scriptures every day. It takes courage to turn down other invitations so that you can reserve that evening for your family. It takes courage and willpower to avoid overscheduling so that your family can be home for dinner.
One of the most effective ways we can influence our sons and daughters is to counsel with them in private interviews. By listening closely, we can discover the desires of their hearts, help them set righteous goals, and also share with them the spiritual impressions that we have received about them. Counseling requires courage.
Try to imagine what the rising generation could become if these five righteous patterns were practiced consistently in every home. Our young people could be like Helaman’s army: invincible (see Alma 57:25–26).
Parenting teenagers in these latter days is a very humbling assignment. Satan and his followers are striving to bring this generation down; the Lord is counting on valiant parents to bring them up. Parents, “Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid” (Joshua 1:9). I know that God hears and will answer your prayers. I testify that the Lord supports and blesses courageous parents.
Several scriptures back up the role of being good parents and proclaim that worthy husbands and wives who have been properly sealed in marriage in a temple of God may fulfill their role as parents throughout eternity.
The cursing may be upon the heads of your parents:2 Ne. 4:6;
Teach parents that they must repent and be baptized:Moro. 8:10;
Parents are commanded to teach the gospel to their children:D&C 68:25;
All children have claim upon their parents:D&C 83:4;
The sins of the parents cannot be answered upon the heads of the children:Moses 6:54;
Olive Davis Osmond
A mother’s influence extends from generation to generation.
We honor our mothers and their ever important responsibility to love and nurture our children. Perhaps the reason we respond so universally to our mothers’ love is because it typifies the love of our Savior, Jesus Christ.
The Lord has placed upon parents the primary responsibility for the spiritual nurturing of their children. Sometimes this responsibility falls to a single parent. My own mother was relatively young when my father died, leaving her alone with four children. But she faced her adversity with faith and courage, promising us that if we stayed on the road of truth, the end would be better than the beginning.
As a rule the mothers are the very best women that live in the world, the best that can be found anywhere. … The good influence that a good mother exercises over her children is like leaven cast into the measure of meal, that will leaven the whole lump; and as far as her influence extends, not only to her own children, but to the associates of her children, it is felt, and good is the result accomplished by it.
You do not know how far your influence extends. A mother that is successful in raising a good boy, or girl, to imitate her example and to follow her precepts through life, sows the seeds of virtue, honor and integrity and of righteousness in their hearts that will be felt through all their career in life; and wherever that boy or girl goes, as man or woman, in whatever society they mingle, the good effects of the example of that mother upon them will be felt; and it will never die, because it will extend from them to their children from generation to generation. And especially do we hope for this in the Gospel of Jesus Christ he, who is the Son of God was indeed no other than the Only Begotten of God in the flesh, and that, therefore, no other than God the eternal Father is his Father and the author of his existence in the world.
Great responsibility rests upon the mothers.
Motherhood lies at the foundation of happiness in the home, and of prosperity in the nation. God has laid upon men and women very sacred obligations with respect to motherhood.
Women that have the same conception of wifehood and motherhood are not exclusively intended for just this life. … We live for time and for eternity. Our affections and our desires are found fitted and prepared to endure not only throughout the temporal or mortal life, but through all eternity.
We shall prosper and upon the earth; for this is our mission, and the work of your mothers and daughters. Great responsibility rests upon you. Upon you depend the training and the direction of the thoughts and the inspiration of the hearts of your children, for they drink into the spirit of their mothers, and the influence of the mother over the children is the most enduring impression that can be made. There is nothing so imperishable as the influence of the mother; that is when she is good and has the spirit of Christ in her heart, and she has brought up her children in the way they should go.
Our mothers, and the mothers of our children, whose hearts are filled with solicitude for the welfare of their children, having had conferred upon them the gift of the Holy Spirit, can go to their secret chambers and bow down before God and commune with Him as no other mothers on earth can do, if they will only observe the principles they have embraced and will live up to their privileges. By the influence that they will thus gain over the hearts of their children they will lead them in the path of righteousness and truth, and bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, in the love of truth, in obedience to His commands, in such a way as others cannot do who are destitute of these privileges, blessings and endowments, so freely conferred upon our mothers.
There can be no genuine happiness separate and apart from the home, and every effort made to sanctify and preserve its influence is uplifting to those who toil and sacrifice for its establishment. Men and women often seek to substitute some other life for that of the home; they would make themselves believe that the home means restraint; that the highest liberty is the fullest opportunity to move about at will. There is no happiness without service, and there is no service greater than that which converts the home into a divine institution, and which promotes and preserves family life.
… The strongest attachments of childhood are those that cluster about the home, and the dearest memories of old age are those that call up the associations of youth and its happy surroundings.
In the home the mother is the principal disciplinarian in early child life, and her influence and discipline determine in a great measure the ability of her children to assume in manhood and womanhood the larger governments in church and state.
I most sincerely hope that our mothers today will guard very zealously and very carefully the lives of their daughters and of their sons. I would if I had it in my power make it possible for all mothers to have the joy and the unspeakable satisfaction of rearing their sons and their daughters above the reproach of men and above the power of sin.
The love of a true mother comes near to being like the love of God.
No love in all the world can equal the love of a true mother. … I have felt sometimes, how could even the Father love his children more than my mother loved her children? It was life to me; it was strength; it was encouragement; it was love that begat love or liking in myself. I knew she loved me with all her heart. She loved her children with all her soul. She would toil and labor and sacrifice herself day and night, for the temporal comforts and blessings that she could meagerly give, through the results of her own labors, to her children. There was no sacrifice of self—of her own time, of her leisure or pleasure, or opportunities for rest—that was considered for a moment, when it was compared with her duty and her love to her children.
When I was fifteen years of age, and called to go to a foreign country to preach the gospel—or to learn how, and to learn it for myself—the strongest anchor that was fixed in my life, and that helped to hold my ambition and my desire steady, to bring me upon a level and keep me straight, was that love which I knew she had for me who bore me into the world.
Only a little boy, not matured at all in judgment, without the advantage of education, thrown in the midst of the greatest allurements and temptations that it was possible for any boy or any man to be subjected to—and yet, whenever these temptations became most alluring and most tempting to me, the first thought that arose in my soul was this: Remember the love of your mother. Remember how she strove for your welfare. Remember how willing she was to sacrifice her life for your good. Remember what she taught you in your childhood. … This feeling toward my mother became a defense, a barrier between me and temptation, so that I could turn aside from temptation and sin by the help of the Lord and the love begotten in my soul, toward her whom I knew loved me more than anybody else in all the world, and more than any other living being could love me.
… The true mother, the mother who has the fear of God and the love of truth in her soul, would never hide from danger or evil and leave her child exposed to it. But as natural as it is for the sparks to fly upward, as natural as it is to breathe the breath of life, if there were danger coming to her child, she would step between the child and that danger; she would defend her child to the uttermost. Her life would be nothing in the balance, in comparison with the life of her child. That is the love of true motherhood for children. …
I have learned to place a high estimate upon the love of mother. I have often said, and will repeat it, that the love of a true mother comes nearer being like the love of God than any other kind of love.
Perhaps the most perfect ideal in the art of healing is the mother whose tender and gracious love asserts itself in taking away the sting of a deserved or an undeserved punishment. How her love heals every wound! How quick her caresses bind up and soothe! The example of her life is the wisdom which love teaches.
There is nothing between me and the heavens that would compensate for doing something that would grieve or hurt my mother. Why? Because she loved me, she would have died for me over and over again, if such were possible, only to have saved me. Why should I grieve, why should I disappoint her? Why should I take a course contrary to her own life and her life’s teachings to me, for she taught me honor, and virtue, and truth, and integrity to the kingdom of God, and she taught me not only by precept but by example.
I cannot express the joy I feel at the thought of meeting my father, and my precious mother, who gave me birth in the midst of persecution and poverty, who bore me in her arms and was patient, forbearing, tender and true during all my helpless moments in the world. The thought of meeting her, who can express the joy?
God bless the mothers.
God bless the mothers and the sons and daughters; and keep our children from the ways of the world, from transgression and from temptation that will lead them astray. May the power of God be over all the household of faith.
I believe that with the Holy Spirit, every mother has the right to know what to do in her family and in her sphere, over her children, in their guidance and direction; and that mother and every mother possessing that spirit has the gift of revelation, the gift of inspiration and the gift of knowledge, which is the spirit of prophecy, the spirit of discernment, a gift of God to them, to govern their households and lead their children in the path of righteousness and truth.
I feel in my heart to bless you, mothers and sisters, with all my heart and with all the power and right that I possess in the priesthood which is after the order of the Son of God. … I have the right and the authority in the priesthood to bless Israel, and to bless those who are faithful, especially; and I feel in my heart to say I bless you.
“All across the world families are falling apart. The place to begin to improve society is in the home. Children do, for the most part, what they are taught. We are trying to make the world better by making the family stronger”, said President Gordon B. Hinckley at the general Relief Society meeting in September 1995 who explained why we have been given “The Family: A Proclamation to the World” now! Since that time, it has been reprinted in many languages for families throughout the world. It has also been presented to government leaders in many lands.
Look around at our communities and nation today and you will understand why we need to heed the counsel and warning from our prophets and the scriptures and remember that “The Family is central to God’s plan.”
Is this happening in your family?
The proclamation states that marriage and family are “ordained of God” and “central to [His] plan for the eternal destiny of His children.” All human beings—male and female—are created in the image of God. Each is a beloved spirit son or daughter of heavenly parents, and, as such, each has a divine nature and destiny. Gender is an essential characteristic of individual premortal, mortal, and eternal identity and purpose. Why is the family central to God’s plan for the eternal destiny of His children? (See D&C 131:1–4; 1 Corinthians 11:11.)
The proclamation also states that we are all spirit children of God, created in His image (see also Genesis 1:26–27). When a Mother and Father create a body for a child, one of Heavenly Father’s Spirit children enters that body. Everything is created spiritually before it is created physiclally. We are taught from the scriptures about our potential and reminds us that we all are members of Heavenly Father’s family which should affect the way you feel about our earthly families and give us the desire to become stronger families.
Sacred ordinances or promises with God make it possible for families to be together eternally.
Knowing that we will live forever after this life should help us understand that the experiences we encounter in this life will help us in our eternal progression. It helps us understand why marriage is necessary for the family to be eternal together. The Holy Temples, the House of the Lord, is where marriages are performed for time AND for all eternity and where promises or covenants with the Lord are made so that families may be together forever. Knowing this forever purpose of the family will help parents prepare their children to follow in the same like manner and affect the way we treat family members now.
The same priesthood power that created worlds, galaxies, and the universe can and should be part of our lives to succor, strengthen, and bless our families, our friends, and our neighbors—in other words, to do the things that the Savior would do if He were ministering among us today. And the primary purpose of this priesthood power is to bless, sanctify, and purify us so we can live together with our families in the presence of our heavenly parents, bound by priesthood sealings, participating in the marvelous work of God and Jesus Christ in forever expanding Their light and glory. This-is-my-work-and-my-glory.
The power to create mortal life is sacred.
God has spoken through our Prophets declaring the means by which mortal life is created to be divinely appointed. We affirm the sanctity of life and of its importance in God’s eternal plan.
Husband and wife have a solemn responsibility to love and care for each other and for their children. “Children are an heritage of the Lord” (Psalm 127:3). Parents have a sacred duty to rear their children in love and righteousness, to provide for their physical and spiritual needs, and to teach them to love and serve one another, observe the commandments of God, and be law-abiding citizens wherever they live. Husbands and wives—mothers and fathers—will be held accountable before God for the discharge of these obligations. This is why obedience to God’s commandments is so important.
God is “the same yesterday, today and forever” and so are His commandments. With His ‘Plan of Happiness’, our spirit bodies will one day return back to heaven. The body cannot live without the spirit and so when it’s time to return, we will physically die; but, we continue to live spiritually. Jesus is the way and reason we all will be resurrected because of His atonement. When we do, our spirits will be reunited once again with our physical bodies never to be separated again.
Henry B. Eyring of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles taught: “Children are the inheritance of the Lord to us in this life and also in eternity. Marriage and Eternal life is not only to have forever our descendants from this life. It is also to have eternal increase.”
Marriage is ‘ordained of God’ and a partnership with God and is most important. When the union of man and a woman co-create a life, one of God’s spirit children enters that child’s physical body as well giving it life. This brings responsibility and accountability for that spirit. The misuse in causing or terminating a life has serious responsibility and consequences!
We can understand why our Heavenly Father commands us to reverence life and to cherish the powers that produce it as sacred. If we do not have those reverential feelings in this life, how could our Father give them to us in the eternities?
Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apolstes taught: “The body is an essential part of the soul. We declare that one who uses the God-given body of another without divine sanction abuses the very soul of that individual, abuses the central purpose and processes of life. In sexual transgression the soul is at stake—the body and the spirit.”
It is most important that parents help children understand the importance of moral cleanliness. They should review with their children the teachings of sexual purity.
Parents have a sacred duty to care for each other and teach their children.
President Gordon B. Hinckley taught: “When you are married, be fiercely loyal one to another. Selfishness is the great destroyer of happy family life. If you will make your first concern the comfort, the well-being, and the happiness of your companion, sublimating any personal concern to that loftier goal, you will be happy, and your marriage will go on throughout eternity.”
Children are blessed when they have parents who love and care for each other. Parents are responsible to teach their children. (See Mosiah 4:14–15; D&C 68:25–28; 93:40.) Parents should find effective ways to teach these principles as they were taught; perhaps in family home evenings, family prayer, mealtime, bedtime, traveling together and working together.
The role of the Church is a secondary role in teaching children with Sunday School and other activities.
Successful marriages and families are based on righteous principles.
The proclamation teaches that “happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. These teachings can bring happiness into your home. “Successful marriages and families are established and maintained on principles of faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work, and wholesome recreational activities.”
What are the primary responsibilities of fathers? One responsibility is to “preside … in love and righteousness”. (See D&C 121:41–46.) Boys and young men can prepare themselves now to provide for their families by encouraging them to gain a formal education and learn practical skills. Young women can also prepare themselves to fulfill the responsibility of being mothers and returning to the old and sacred values which begin in the home. It is here that truth is learned, that integrity is cultivated, that self-discipline is instilled, and that love is nurtured. Mothers, guard your children. Nothing is more precious to you as mothers, absolutely nothing. Your children are the most valuable thing you will have in time or all eternity. You will be fortunate indeed if, as you grow old and look at those you brought into the world, you find in them uprightness of life, virtue in living, and integrity in their behavior. This is also important for fathers to nurture their children because as parents, you should help each other as equal partners.
The proclamation concludes by warning of the serious consequences of family disintegration and by calling upon all people to strengthen the family. Individuals who violate covenants of chastity, who abuse spouse or offspring, or who fail to fulfill family responsibilities will one day stand accountable before God. Further, we warn that the disintegration of the family will bring upon individuals, communities, and nations the calamities foretold by ancient and modern prophets.
We call upon responsible citizens and officers of government everywhere to promote those measures designed to maintain and strengthen the family as the fundamental unit of society.
President Gordon B. Hinckley told a gathering of mayors and other public officials: “To you men and women of great influence, you who preside in the cities of the nation, to you I say that it will cost far less to reform our schools, to teach the virtues of good citizenship, than it will to go on building and maintaining costly jails and prisons. … But there is another institution of even greater importance than the schools. It is the home. I believe that no nation can rise higher than the strength of its families.” Families must be strong in order for nations to survive.
The proclamation also warns that those “who abuse spouse or offspring … will one day stand accountable before God.” Church leaders have spoken out against abuse of any kind. The following quotation can be applied to both men and women:
“Never abuse your wives. Never abuse your children. But gather them in your arms and make them feel of your love and your appreciation and your respect. Be good husbands. Be good fathers.” Gordon B. Hinckley
Suzanne and I have both been blessed with “goodly parents” that put us first and taught us by example the way to become. We saw more sermons than we did in hearing them from our kind and hard working fathers and loving, nurturing and caring mothers who sacrificed their lives for us. It is now much easier for us as parents to know how to raise our children having watched our parents deal with the many challenges of raising a family today. Yes, it can be challenging in raising a family today but the blessings are literally “Out Of This World”!
For those who have wayward children and may have made mistakes themselves in the past, remember that a most important part of God’s plan of life through the atonement of Jesus Christ is that of repentance and forgiveness. To receive forgiveness through repentance, remember, Jesus is The Way.
When we were young as a nation, our forefathers promised to remember God and to keep His commandments. God in turn promised to protect us as a nation and to give us prosperity. We are concerned that the covenants or promises that we have made with God have been broken and are not being kept. If we see trubulation and hard times come into our lives and to our families, then it is only because we have broken our promises with God. He then, does not have to keep His covenants and promises either!
We are living during the last days, a “great and dreadful day”, when Satan is desperate to win as many souls of mankind and our families that he can. May we remember God, our Heavenly Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ, and put prayer and thanksgiving back into our homes, schools and nation. May we love one another and stop aborting innocent children who each have a spirit body within and keep God’s commandments so that we may be worthy of His love and blessings once again.
The mayor of a Washington town has directed pastors to stop invoking the name “Jesus Christ” in city council invocations.
Don Jensen, the mayor of Longview, Wash., told the Kelso-Longview Ministerial Association that prayers mentioning Christ were not acceptable because they could expose the city to a lawsuit.
The decision has sparked controversy in the city – located about 50 miles north of Portland, Ore.
Mark Schmutz, who pastors the Northlake Baptist Church, said if they can’t speak the name Jesus Christ, association ministers will no longer provide the invocation.
“We need to be able to speak Jesus’ name,” he told The Daily News. “They’re asking us not to do what we’re called to do. This is the one and only true God. We’re not trying to be against anybody – we’re just being clear about what we’re for.
Local ministers have been leading City Council invocations for more than 50 years – and until recently there had never been any complaints.
That changed when resident Dan Smith started raising concerns about the constitutionality of prayers that include the name of Christ and whether it was appropriate for the ministerial association to be responsible for the prayers.
“I do fully realize that this may not be a popular thing for you to do, but as an elected public official it is the right thing to do,” he wrote in a letter to council members.
Smith describes himself as a “comfortable atheist” – and called the longtime prayers an embarrassment. He hinted that unless the prayers were dropped it might lead to a lawsuit.
The city’s attorney said invocations are certainly permitted under the Constitution but what is unclear is whether the prayers can invoke the name of Jesus Christ.
Mayor Jensen told the newspaper he regretted having to issue the edict.
“It’s not my choice to stop this, but I don’t know how we can put our citizens at jeopardy and cost our city and our citizens a lot of money,” he said.
Jensen said the invocations set the right tone for their meetings and said it encouraged residents to be “more friendly.”
“Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near mewith their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men.”Isaiah 29:13 .
‘SIGNS OF THE TIMES’
Second Coming of Jesus Christ:
At the beginning of the Millennial Era, Christ will return to the earth. This event will mark the end of the mortal probation of this earth. The wicked will be removed from the earth and the righteous will be caught up in a cloud while the earth is cleansed. While no man knows exactly when Christ will come for the second time, He has given us signs to watch for that indicate the time is drawing near (Matt. 24; JS—M 1).
I know that my Redeemer shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: Job 19:25;
“For the hour is nigh and the day soon at hand when the earth is ripe; and all the proud and they that do wickedly shall be as stubble; and I will burn them up, saith the Lord of Hosts, that wickedness shall not be upon the earth;
For the hour is nigh, and that which was spoken by mine apostles must be fulfilled; for as they spoke so shall it come to pass;
For I will reveal myself from heaven with power and great glory, with all the hosts thereof, and dwell in righteousness with men on earth a thousand years, and the wicked shall not stand.” D&C 29 9-11
May we humble ourselves and take a stand for righteousness and against wickedness. If we don’t quit pulling away from the Lord our God, as prophecies have told, He will pull away from us and then the end will come.
It’s time to take a stand for good or evil!
On which side will you be standing?
Can we talk? Are you prepared for this world and for the next?
In life, when we are young, our parents usually work hard to teach and train us so that we will be prepared to meet life’s challenges as we grow up in this world. It is a joy for parents to see their children learn and improve and have all the opportunities that they had, or didn’t have, and more. They send us to schools, help us develop our talents, do things with us and take us places and have fun. They are to teach us truths and principles of right and wrong and how to be organized, get a job, and learn to work for those goals we desire. They usually correct us in our mistakes and try to set good examples of how we should act and behave in order to help us ‘get on our feet’ and to become independent and to live full lives. They spend much time and hopefully pray for our success and happiness so that we can receive the blessings that this life has to offer, or at least should have!
Those parents and their children who have prepared and have planned for their futures have put forth the effort and investment of learning and working for success in this world will usually find those things for which they had planned. But have they learned for themselves and taught their children about the next life? Have we been prepared for life after death, how to deal with it; or do we even believe in such a thing?
This is a most important question that everyone must ask of themselves and to find their own answers which are available. I remember when I did and expressed it in a song!
I wrote in my journal about a song that I wrote expressing these feelings called, “Are You Up There.” My journal records:
“I was in my bed in California late one evening having read scriptures, prayed, and pondered for a great amount of time as to what it was that was in my bosom that I NEEDED to “say”. I could feel it as though it were a physical object inside of me trying to get out. I would stare at the piano keys that were located at the foot of my bed. I was wide-awake but totally still and quiet for around 4+ hours. At about 2 or three o’clock A.M., something happened.
It was an emotional experience as I asked myself . . . “What are you trying to say?” “What is it?” It was like a light turned on . . . and got brighter. Here I was sitting up in bed with my pencil and pad of paper in hand and I started to write. Not only did I write lyrics to an inspired song but also, as I looked at the piano keys, I could see what the music cords and melody were to be. I hardly ever went back to check what I had written or made changes! When I finished I re-read the song and started to cry. I will NEVER forget that experience as long as I live! Someone was helping me. “
Are You Up There?
It could all end tomorrow, and where would I be? Does life go on or will it be the end of me? Seems a bit unfair to think that all I’ve learned and done belongs to no one.
Why should I cherish living if there’s no so called plan?
Why, I would have no future if it were left to man.
I can’t believe that we just happened and don’t know what for. There must be more.
Why should I trust in a love that I can’t have forever? Does it seem right to live a game of take-away? Should I want for children if there isn’t any more for them to live for?
Maybe I’m a pessimist – then maybe I’m not. One thing that I’d like to know is what I’ve got. I don’t want a miracle or to see you in the air, but are you up there?
Are you everywhere? Do you really care? Are you up there?
“I prayed to my Heavenly Father giving Him thanks as I knew that I had been inspired from another source, a very, very good source, for I could NOT have written these words or music myself. I could hardly sleep the rest of the night. I would lie there for the next few hours and re-collect my experience and thoughts. I wanted morning to come very badly so I could share this experience and song with my Brothers!”
Everyone hopes and wants to believe that this life has purpose and reasons to live; that someone cares and is watching over us. Even the atheist when facing death cries out, “Oh my God, please help me.” We can fear death or prepare for it by asking and studying the Holy Scriptures which have God’s and Jesus Christ’s words recorded about these things. We also can pray and ask if God is there and if the things the scriptures teach are true. Will you be talking or praying in vain? No!
As the lyrics to the song asks, it makes reason to believe that ‘there must be more’; that we didn’t just happen and that there was a ‘PLAN of Life’. Well, there is!
According to my faith and beliefs, we all lived before this world was with our Heavenly Parents and were born with a spirit body. We were taught truths and learned many things. We were told about God’s ‘Plan of Life’ and the creation that would happen. We had free agency to choose to come to this world or not via our earthly parents in order for us to obtain a body of flesh and bones in which would house our spirit bodies and be able to create life. This was all very sacred.
Without getting into a lengthy doctrinal article here, we all as children of God were prepared before we came to earth to gain a physical body like God, learn truths and choose between good and evil, and to become more like our Heavenly parents and to be given the opportunity or not to be proven or tested; to become parents and co-creators ourselves with God in bearing children here on earth. We were taught the laws of chastity and marriage and “to multiply and replenish the earth” in order to fulfill “God’s work and glory in bringing to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.” This is what God does as a creator.
The Lord Jesus, the Son of God , came to earth to teach us and show by example the way we must follow and become in order to redeem us from our sins. He knew we would make mistakes and that it would take a God, or son of God, to be able to pay the price for our sins, which He did for us! “God is not the author of confusion “and “our ways are not God’s ways”, but we are His children and must obey His laws; and if not, we will pay a price. As always, we have our free agency and the power to choose.
In today’s world, there is a tendency to ignore and even deny God’s existence and to choose evil versus good, which anyone can do. That doesn’t mean that He isn’t still there! “The natural man is an enemy to God.” It takes effort and good choices and work in order to do good. God has always shown to us those things we must do in order to return to live with Him once again. He taught Adam and Eve and has spoken to us through His prophets over time about those sacred things and His plan of life. He gave us the Ten Commandments through Moses and spoke through other prophets. Jesus Christ was born and came to fulfill those commandments and we now must follow His words and laws that He gave us.
We have been promised all that God has with posterity and the blessings of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob through our various lineages of which we were born. Our lineage is important and our posterity will derive us blessings. Though God separated us into twelve tribes and confounded our languages at the time of the Tower of Babel, it was all done for a wise purpose. God has not forgotten us but remembered each of us and His various tribes that He gave His words and promises to and commanded them to be recorded as with The Bible and The Book of Mormon. He will soon gather all the tribes together once again along with their records which have been hidden up to come forth. Jesus will also be returning once again.
God has continually told us that we can all return to heaven after we die to come forth after the resurrection to be judged of our works. He also has told us that, “In my house are many mansions.” “There is a glory like unto the stars, the moon and the sun. So also is the resurrection.” We will live in one of His mansions above of which laws we are able to live, or in everlasting darkness; hell.
Now the question:
So, have you prepared yourself to dwell with God once again? “The next world?” Have you read His words and listened to His prophets so that you know those things that you must do while here on earth in order to achieve the highest degree of glory In His Kingdom after this life? We are to follow Jesus’s example and with faith, repentance, and baptism by one holding the authority from Jesus, (children under the age of 8 years of age are innocent and have no need to be baptized), and to receive the Holy Ghost. There are also sacred covenants that the Lord’s people take upon themselves in The House of the Lord and have since the beginning of time. These are most important promises between you and God. This knowledge has always been upon the earth since Adam and Eve.
These truths are not secret but sacred and are available today but you must be worthy of receiving them. They are performed in the Holy Temples or The House of The Lord. Without them, you will not be able to return to live in the Celestial Kingdom, the highest kingdom of Heaven where God dwells, without them. Yes, God has prepared other kingdoms for those who cannot or are not willing to live the higher laws yet promises that you will be happy. “But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.” 1 Corinthians 2:9
Some records from the Bible with many precious parts have been taken out of it and were lost from the Bible during the time of Constantine about 3-400 AD. The Lord knew this would happen and “will not be frustrated”. Thus, He had the tribes in various parts of the world record His words as He visited them after He was resurrected. These records with those missing truths will come forth before we are to be judged.
Again, it is WE, who must choose. God’s blessings are available to ALL, if they but seek them, learn them, and live His laws and keep His Commandments.
THIS IS WHAT WE EACH SHOULD BE SEEKING TO LEARN AND PREPARED TO LIVE!
